Shuttle check for looms



Sept. 5, 1967 G. URQUHART SHUTTLE CHECK FOR LOOMS Filed Aug. 2, 1965 INVENTOR. Lira ya! 6- Ib za/Earl WWW United States Patent Office 3,33 9,5 9 l Patented Sept. 5, 1967 3,339,591 SHUTTLE CHECK FOR LOOMS Lloyd G. Urquhart, Westboro, Mass., assiguor to H. F. Livermore Corporation, Boston, Mass, a corporation of Delaware Filed Aug. 2, 1965, Ser. No. 476,572 1 Claim. (Cl. 139-183) As commonly constructed a loom comprises a lay supported by swords and carries a reed at each end of the shuttle box which consists of a front box plate and a back guide plate having an overhanging surface to guide the shuttle into the box. Usually the back box plate is of onepiece cast-iron construction and the shelf is covered with leather. The back box plate is secured to the sword by a bolt and aligned with the reed by set screws.

As it enters the shed after being picked the shuttle tends to rise and as it enters the shuttle box on the opposide side it must be deflected downwardly by the shelf. The repeated impact on the shelf causes rapid wear on the leather covering and occasional breakage of the castiron shelf. In replacing a shelf it must be realigned by the aforesaid set screws, involving additional trouble and expense. Inasmuch as the shuttle enters the box at different heights the fixed shelf causes erratic shuttle boxing by applying different degrees of friction depending on the height of entry.

Objects of the present invention are to overcome the aforesaid difficulties and to provide means for checking shuttles as they enter the shuttle box which is simple and economical to produce, which guides and brakes shuttles smoothly without shock, which correctly positions shuttles as they enter the shuttle box, which may be quickly and easily replaced without removing the back plate and which are durable and reliable in use.

This invention involves a leaf spring, means for mounting the spring over a lay with one side facing the lay with its front end fixed and its rear end free to flex away from the lay and with the spring inclining downwardly from the fixed end into the path of the shuttle, thereby yieldingly to deflect the shuttle toward the lay and check its flight. Preferably the invention involves a stop at the free end of the spring to restrict movement of the spring, thereby to increase the checking efiect of the spring as it is flexed, and a second stop intermediate the ends of the spring to restrict further movement of the spring after it has been flexed a predetermined amount. In the preferred embodiment the forward end of the spring is bowed downwardly, and the portion of said bowed end first engaged by the shuttle is shaped to conform approximately to the longitudinal curvature of the shuttle.

For the purpose of illustration typical embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings in which FIG. 1 is a plan view;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view from the line 2-2 of FIG. 1 showing a shuttle entering the shuttle box;

FIG. 3 is a similar view showing the shuttle in an advanced position; and

FIG. 4 is a view like FIG. 2 showing a modification.

The particular embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 comprises the following conventional parts: a lay plate 1, a lay sword 2, a back box plate 3, a back box plate extension 4 secured to the back box plate by means of a machine screw 6, a binder 7 pivoted to the lay plate at 8, and a front box plate 9 secured to the lay plate at 11 and 12, the faces of the binder 7 and front box plate 9 being covered with leather facings 13 and 14. In the usual way the back box plate 3 is accurately positioned on the lay sword by means of three screws 16, 17 and 18 which thread through the back box plate and bear on the lay sword, the back box plate being held in adjusted position by means of a screw 19 extending through the lay sword from the rear and threading into the back box plate to hold the adjusting screws 16, 17 and 18 firmly against the front face of the lay sword. As shown at the left-hand end of FIG. 1 the shuttle box is provided with the usual stop 21 to stop the shuttles by engagement with their tips.

According to this invention a leaf spring 22 is mounted on the front of the back box plate 3 by means of a screw 23, the spring extending downwardly into the path of a shuttle S entering the box. The spring has a tail 24 extending upwardly over a stop pin 26 and thence rearwardly under another stop pin 27. The portion 28 of the spring first engaged by a shuttle is shaped to conform approximately to the longitudinal curvature of the shuttle. As the shuttle enters the box the spring is flexed upwardly to the position shown in FIG. 3, thereby gradually increasing its braking action and deflecting the shuttle downwardly under the back box plate extension 4. As shown in FIG. 4 the spring may be covered with a facing 29 of leather or the like.

To replace a spring it is necessary merely to remove the screw 23. The back box plate 3 need not be removed and readjusted as has been necessary heretofore with a back guide plate having an overhanging surface to guide the shuttle into the box.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

For controlling a shuttle as it enters a shuttle box having a lay, a leaf spring, means for mounting the spring over a lay with one side facing the lay, with its front end fixed and its rear end free to flex away from the lay and with the spring inclining downwardly from the fixed end into the path of the shuttle, thereby yieldingly to deflect the shuttle toward the lay and check its flight, a stop at the free end of the spring to restrict movement of the spring, thereby to increase the checking effect of the spring as it is flexed, and a second stop intermediate the ends of the spring to restrict further movement of the spring after it has been flexed a predetermined amount, the forward end of the spring being bowed downwardly and having a concave portion, said concave portion being shaped to conform approximately to the longitudinal curvature of the shuttle when it is first engaged by the shuttle.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 11,505 8/1854 Miggett 139193 1,167,369 1/1916 Joncas 139-193 1,765,266 6/1930 Harding 139183 2,171,729 9/ 1939 Livermore 139-183 2,250,413 7/1941 Brown 139l83 2,580,297 12/1951 Hoeber 139--183v MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner. I. KEE CHI, Assistant Examiner. 

